Visit the historic
mining town of Matakanui or Tinkers as it was originally
known.
This cache is another in the series of caches in which drawp has
traced some of the pathways of his heritiage. A paternal great
grandfather was a gold miner at Tinkers.
Matakanui, nestled under the foothills of the Dunstan Mountains
, once a bustling mining town, offers a special glimpse into how
life must have been during the rush for Central Otago gold.
The name Matakanui refers to one of three high points along the
Dunstan Range. It was originally known as Tinkers and there are
different theories for this. It may have come from the
miners’ camp resembling a tinkers’ camp with all its
pots and pans (tinsmiths were then called tinkers); or it may be
based on a reply given by a miner when asked how/what he was doing
– “tinkering around”.
Continuing straight on the Loop Road you will see the original
school with its rare rooftop bell tower. Only a few of the original
mud brick buildings remain. The old Duggan's mud-brick store began
life as a goldfields dancehall and operated right into the 1980s.
The former Newtown Hotel was rebuilt after being destroyed by fire
using the old stone walls of the original. These buildings are now
privately owned and respect for people’s privacy is
important.
An old sluicing monitor gun stands just behind the street sign as a
memorial to the miners who worked in the area and a water sluicer
lies by the start of Sugarpot Road. Follow Loop Road, along which
old diggings scar the broom-covered hills.
Take in the relics from days long past and imagine those hardy
souls who once brought Matakanui to life. If the light’s
right, peaking through the windows of Teddy Duggan’s
long-closed general store may give you a glimpse of merchandise,
unsold and dust-layered on dusty wooden shelves
The cache is a 200 ml sistema container with log book and
pencil.